Educational appliance.



J. E. PEOPLES. EDUCATIONAL APPLIANCE. APPLICATION FILED MAY re. 1914.

1 9 1 4 1,409., Patented June 1, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I- Q' 19 B Id l ,I j z; 4 'l! Allorney THE NORRIS PETERS C0,, PHOTG-LITHQ, WASHINGTON. D. C.

LIQIAO,

WITNESSES J. E. PEOPLES.

EDUCATIONAL APPLIANCE. APPLICATION FILED MAY16,19I4.

Patented June 1, 1915.

2 $HEETS-SHEET 2,

xmewax JE-Peop/es 0-. WASHINGTON. D. C.

[N VENT OR THE NORRIS PETERS Cu, PHOTO LIT inarrnp srarns rarniar orrreia JAMES E. PEOPLES, OF ALVA, OKLAHOMA.

EDUCATIONAL APPLIANCE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES E. PEOPLES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Alva, in the county of Woods and State of Oklahoma, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Educational Appliances; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description 0g the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in devices for educating children primarily and for use as a memorandum register if desired.

One of the objects of this invention is to assist teachers in educating children by giving optical demonstrations at the same time a lesson is taught.

Another object of this invention is to give a device that is compact easy of manipulation and durable.

Similar characters, refer to similar parts throughout the specification and drawings, in which, V

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of my device, Fig. 2 a plan view, and, Fig. 3 is a detail of one of the card supports. Fig. 4, is a detail view of a clip to a modified form of the card supporting device.

- 1 indicates the casing to a preferred form of my invention, which in this case includes a hinged cover 2,- a hinged top piece 3, the body section 4, a drawer 5, and a base 6. Running transversely across the portion e of my frame work. is a supporting bar 7 having a plate extension 8 across the front thereof, and a plurality of recesses 9 slightly .to the rear of the plate 8. A second transverse bar 10 runs across my portion 4 which hingedly supports a member 11 hereinafter described. Attached to the bar 10 is a second member 12, having across the top face 13 thereof, a. felt or other suitable padding 14:.

The casing 1 which is separable from the portion 4: has cross members 15 and 16,

V which have a series of slots or orifices 18 therein, for the insertion of card or plate supporting bars 19 being hereinafter more fully described. Transversely running across the bottom of this casing 1 is a member 20 which supports from its undersurface 21 a felt or other suitable padding 22. A multiplicity of keys 23 having suitable Specification of Letters Patent. Patented June 1, 1915. Application filed. May 16, 1914. Serial No. 839,116. 7

notches 24:, across their lower surface are supported by means of said notch on the forementioned plate 8 and are retained upon the cross bar 7 by means of pins 25 which are seated in the recesses 9, heretofore mentioned. The rear ends of these key bars 23 rest upon the forementioned padding 14 which serves to support the key bars and to deaden the sound of the impact of the key bars 23 against the forementioned padding 14:. There is also a rear end projection or extension 26 on the key bars the function of which will be hereinafter explained.

Pivotally connected at 27 and 28 to the key bars 23 are series of links 28 and 29, the series of links 28 being pivoted in alinement and in a plane farther to the front of the device than are the series of links 29, the series 29 being likewise in alinement, the series of links 28 are pivoted to every other key bar and the series of links 29 are pivoted to another group of every other key bars, this structure giving a staggered arrangement and allowing of a closer grouping of the parts. This staggered effect can be seen from a perusal of the drawings in Fig. 2. Pivotally connected to these links, as at 30, are a series of card or plate supporting bars 31 and 32, the bars 31 being pivoted to the links 28 and the bars 32 to key bars 23 to which the links 29 are pivoted have a raised portion 34 at their front ends the effect of this arrangement being to somewhat approximate the keys on a piano.

In the top of each of the bars 31 and32 is cut a slot 35 into which a card or plate 36 is inserted, the card or plate having a cutaway portion 37 of a width just sufficient to match the width of the bars 31 and 32, for this purpose. This allows of a snug and rigid arrangement whereby the cards or plates can be easily mounted or demounted. On the sides of these cards or plates facing the pupils are placed in large figures suit able numbers or characters, while on the opposite side, that is, on the side facing the teacher, are placed like characters or numbers, but in small type. A duplicate of these characters or numbers may be placed upon the surface 33 and 34: of the key bars 23 to correspond with the card inserted in the supporting bar actuated by the same key bar L but this is not essential. Upon the depression of the key bar 23, a corresponding card supporting bar 31 or 32 is elevated through the medium of the link28 or the link 29, as

. at the bent portion 41. This portion 42 extends through suitable apertures in the member 11, through which it can play and its end 43 is bent downwardly to form a stop check against the surface of the member 11. Connected to the top surface of the member 11 by a suitable fastening device 44 and at one corner thereof isan operating bar 45. This bar 45 runs through a suitable slot 46 in the front portion of the member 4 and carries a thumb nut 47 upon the end thereof. A re cess 45" is made in the undersurface of the member 45 which is looked over a retaining device 48 and is suitably fastened tothe surface of the member 49' as illustrated in Fig. 1.

' Attached to the member 11 in the vicinity of the fastening device 44 is a pressure spring 50 which is seated in a suitable chamber 51 in the member 52 as clearly shown in Fig. 2. This spring has a tendency to push the hinged member 11 .rearwardly except when said member is locked against movement through the medium of the members .45 and 48 as can clearly be seen upon the show ingin Fig. 1. Upon the depression of the key bar 23 the proiection 26 strikes the spring 39 forcing it in, throughthe member 11, until the projection 26 has passed the spring. when the spring springs out under the projection .26 and retains it in its elevated position. There is one spring to each key bar 23. and as many cards can. be elevated as is desired. according to the capacity of the device. However, when it is desired to drop or lower the cards, the member 45 is released from the member48, the spring 50 throws the member 11 rearwardly until the springs 39 clear the bottom of the projections 26, allowing the key bars 23 to drop until they strike the padding 14. I might add, in depressing a key bar 23 it can rise only as far as is allowed by the-padding 22,

but this allows them to rise far enough to elevate the cards 36 to the desired position and at the same timev clearing the springs 39.

Glass windows 53 and 54 are suitably placed in my top portion 3 so that both the teacher and the pupils can see the characters upon the cards or plates 36 when they are elevated. When it is desired to change the cards the member 3 which is hinged at 55 to the casing 1, is turned backward and a change made when the part 3 is returned to.

its normal position.

To further secure the. cards or plates 36 upon the bars 31 and 32a clip 56, such as is indicated in Fig. 4, can be attached to the bars by a suitable fastening 57 this clip having its upper end inturned to bind the cards or plates 36 against the supporting bars 31 and 32; I

The cards can readily be kept in the 7 drawer 5for use and the interior of the operating parts can easily be reached, owing to the'fact that my casing is built up in detachable sections 4 and 6 as previously mentioned. V v

I do not desire to be limited to the form and structure shown, andclaim all possible modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is: v r p 1. An indicatingdevice comprising a sectional casing, transverse supporting bars connected to one of the sections of said casing, a hinged member attached on one of the said transverse bars, a spring operating device connected to saidhinged member,

means to lock said'hinged member against the operation of said spring, vertical bars supporting indicating devices, and means upon said hinged member-to lock said v'erti cal supporting bars in elevated position, said last mentioned locking means being released upon theopera'tionfof said first mentioned 7 3 locking means. r

2. An educational device comprising means to elevate educational a. characters, hinged means to retain said educationalcharacters in elevated position, means to release said retaining means, and means to lock said retaining means against movement upon its hinges. f

3. Aneducational device, comprising operating means, supporting means, indicating means mounted in said supporting means having like indications upon the opposite faces thereof, hingedmeans to look said supporting means in an elevated position and spring actuated means to release said locking means;

4.- An educational device comprising a plurality of pivoted operating devices, a plurality of supporting devices connected to said operating devices, a plurality of double faced indicating. devices mounted in said supporting devices, a hinged device having a plurality of locking means to lock said supporting devices in an elevated position,

and means to release said locking means.

5. An educational device comprising a casing, double faced indicating devices housed in said casing, operating means to elevate said indicating devices into view, a

pivoted device supporting a plurality of name to this specification in the presence of locking means, said locking means being two subscribing witnesses. fiexible'against action in one direction and inflexible against action in the opposite di- JAMES PEOPLES 5 rection, and means to shift said locking Witnesses:

means out of operative position. MELVILLE C. MASON,

In testimony whereof I have signed my J. D. STEWART.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of ratentc,

Washington, D. 0. 

